When Things Don't go to Plan

Posted by Ben Hudson 3 months ago.

As we heard last week, Alan Lukabyo (our senior minister) took off for Madagascar on Tuesday. He was to be part of a conference of the Madagascan bishops to discuss training Madagascan ministers and a possible partnership with the Sydney diocese. This promised to be a very significant and strategic meeting for the growth of the gospel in that country. I was praying for it, and looking forward to hearing all about it.

On Thursday evening I received an email from Al. It read 'There's been a cyclone in the capital of Madagascar which has prevented us entering the country. We've been stranded in Reunion, and have finally decided to return home…'

For many reasons, this seems like such a shame. And it got me thinking about how we should respond to disappointment when things don't go to plan- even when the plan seems so in line with God's will.

The apostle James cautions us against being too precious about our plans. 'listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city" … you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.”' Our knowledge is so limited and our lives are relatively small parts of a much bigger story. We can take comfort in the fact that God runs the world, and he knows what he's doing.

And at the same time, often we are right to be disappointed, because this world is not all as it should be or as God wants it. Evil and frustration and disorder and cyclones are at large in our world. With Jesus, we long for 'God's will to be done on earth, as it is in heaven'. But this godly disappointment will give rise to Christian hope as we look to and wait for God to bring in his renewed creation which will be free from evil and suffering and disappointments.